Why special youth intervention programs fail in. Nigeria -Minister

The Minister of Youth Development, Comrade Ayodele Olawande, has identified some of the reasons why special intervention programs for youth empowerment failed in the country. This is as he also called for the establishment of a national youth development bank, as part of measures to stem mass relocation of Nigerians, especially the youths, also known […]

The Minister of Youth Development, Comrade Ayodele Olawande, has identified some of the reasons why special intervention programs for youth empowerment failed in the country.

This is as he also called for the establishment of a national youth development bank, as part of measures to stem mass relocation of Nigerians, especially the youths, also known as ‘japa syndrome’ abroad for greener pastures.

He was speaking on Tuesday in Abuja at a roundtable organised by Connected Development (CODE), with the theme ‘Empowering Nigerian Youths for National Development: From Promises to Progress’, involving key young tech experts, young entrepreneurs and civil society organisations (CSOs), to better the lots of Nigerian youths.

“I was a minister of state, before I was appointed into my present position by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, I was in 28 states, working not at the state capitals but at the grassroots where attention were needed. I discovered that what the youths need in northwest, is different from what the youths need in southwest, but because of misplaced priority, you take what the youth need in southwest to northwest or northcentral, likewise southeast and southsouth.

“So, why can’t we just sit down and look at it, and determine what is needed to be done.

“I discovered that we have in 2024 alone, I’ve not started talking about 2025, in 2024 alone, we have 896 youth initiative in different ministry, agencies, and parastatals, out of these 800, we have numbers of projects that are going, over 1,000 to 1,137, we have implementation locations, again, same thing, we have state and FCT,” Olawande said.

He also called for urgent establishment of a national youth development bank, promising that young Nigerians would soon access financing in a way that is secure, inclusive, and impactful.

He said,,“Even the investment fund we’re talking about, when we sit down, everyone brings their phone, it must be protected,” he said, hinting at digital inclusion and data privacy challenges. The legal problem we’re facing has been solved. The President is an institution. Let us use what we produce, that is how the economy can grow.”

Speaking earlier, the Chief Executive of Connected Development (CODE), Mallam Hamzat Lawal, urged government and civil society to deepen support for youth-driven sectors such as tech, fashion, and film.

“Young Nigerians are pioneers, but systemic inequalities continue to stifle our potential,” Lawal said.

He urged the government to back a N100bn naira youth fund, not solely with cash but also with policy support that attracts partners.

Lawal said, “Let us build a basket fund. The JAPA syndrome is real because young people don’t see opportunity.”

He also listed four key demands of harmonised state-level youth policies, regular youth-government dialogues, scaled-up youth financing, and engagement with faith-based youth leaders to promote inclusion across communities.